Stuck
by BookwormKiwi
Summary: Cameron starts off locked in a store. She meets up with House. Adventure ensues. Warning: Don't read it if you don't like pointless fluff. Pairing: Building up to HouseCam. Sadly, completed.
1. Chapter 1

Stuck

BookwormKiwi

Disclaimer: As I am a young typist (Buzzkill Bunny's words), nobody would see me as a great threat to their income or possession of characters, so would not sue me.

A/N: Thanks, Buzzkill Bunny, no more torches.

"We are facing a slight malfunction with electrical equipment, and would appreciate if you could clear out as soon as possible."

The voice over the speakers drew one particular shopper's head up from the shelves. There were much mutterings of rudeness to customers, but Allison Cameron only cared about one thing. Apart from House. She smiled at the sudden thought, though soon stopped when she realised a man was looking at her funny.

She had to get out.

She quickly threw a couple of books she had picked up, along with a tin of cat food into a plastic bag that was conveniently floating around the shelves.

Hastening towards the exit, she tripped over a small plastic bike that had obviously fallen off the shelves.

Throwing her arms out to brace the impact of the fall which might have occurred, but didn't, as Cameron has very good balance, Cameron lost grip of the bag, and it went flying out of her hands.

She swore lightly, because Cameron was too pure to know any _really_ bad words, and quickened her pace to get out of the store.

She hurriedly got out of the children's toys section, and fell into the children's clothes section.

But before she could move along to women's wear, the lights went out, and she ran into…something, which she had no idea what it was.

Cameron swore again, and vaguely wished she _did_ know those really bad words.

Cameron plopped herself down on the floor, and wondered where exactly in the store she was, how she would get out, and even pondered the meaning of life, for a while, until she remembered what she was supposed to be thinking about.

She hugged her knees to her chest, and closed her eyes. Willing herself not to fall asleep, she rested her head against the wall right behind her.

Cameron shot up. Since when was there a wall behind her? There had been a rack of clothes near her when she was stumbling around before.

She left the unexplained wall, because since she was up, and no longer in danger of falling asleep, she thought she might as well wander around.

Cameron's eyes had grown semi used to the dark, so she could see almost a metre ahead if she squinted and tried real hard.

Making out the shape of the candy section, she headed over, feeling her stomach rumble.

Of course, being Cameron, she knew that candy did not fill you up; she had always been told that as a kid, and more importantly, that stealing was wrong.

A little voice in her head, however, told her that all rules have a little bit added to the end that says,

'This rule applies at all times, except in special circumstances', and that being locked in a department store would be classified as a special circumstance.

Cameron slipped a bag of peppermints off its rack. She put her hands up to the top of the bag, and started to pull.

She stopped. Her conscience got the better of her, and she decided that she couldn't eat them, not only because you can't eat candy when you're hungry, but she also didn't have a toothbrush, and there's no way you can eat sugar without brushing your teeth before bed.

However, there was one small problem. Was there anything she _could_ eat?

Stumped, Cameron sat down again. Then she had a _bright_ idea.

"I'll need a flashlight!" she cried.

"Like we hadn't figured _that_ out already," came a voice from the shadows (there were a lot of them), making Cameron jump.

"Who's there?" she called out to the darkness.

"Nerves make your ears not work so well?" The figure moved forwards into Cameron's line of vision.

"House!"

"Yep, the one you know and love," he replied. "Literally."

Cameron was faintly glad of the imposing darkness to hide her red cheeks, but she carried on as though she could not feel them burning.

"What are you doing here?"

"It's not as if I _want_ to be here," he growled. He sniffed. "Neither do you, I suppose."

Cameron felt the distinct urge to roll her eyes, but restrained herself.

"How do we get out of here?" she asked in her no nonsense voice.

"_Clearly_ you don't want to be left alone with me," House said tauntingly.

"Clearly," Cameron mumbled.

House winced.

"Don't say that." He put a hand to his chest. "It _hurts_."

Cameron did not resist the rolling of her eyes this time. Then she sighed.

"House, we're stuck in here together, so hopefully-" She was cut off by a small cough from behind her.


	2. Chapter 2

Stuck

BookwormKiwi

Disclaimer: Not mine

Cameron whipped around, her heart beating wildly. Finding no one, she turned back to House and narrowed her eyes.

"What did you-"

"I didn't."

House's tone was cool and calm, but Cameron could almost pick up traces of amusement.

House cleared his throat.

"There's someone there," he said, trying, but failing to imitate one of those cartoon ghosts' wails.

Cameron's laboured breathing almost made House stop making fun of her, but _his_ conscience got the better of him, and he continued. Can't have her thinking he'd weaken at the sign of fear.

"Who's there?" he asked slowly, trying to push a grin away. Cameron backed away from the noise and straight into House. Hastily, she pushed herself away again, with a scared look up at House.

"The way you're looking at me," House said, "anyone'd think you expect me to cane you."

Cameron looked away, which told House that that was indeed what she feared.

Without a second thought, House threw his cane almost a metre away from where they stood.

"I'm defenceless," he announced. Cameron started to laugh.

"You also won't be able to walk," she grinned.

House realised with a jolt that she was right.

"Damn," he muttered. He shot a glare at Cameron, who was still sniggering softly, which immediately quietened her.

Cameron had almost forgotten about the coughing person behind her, until she felt a hand come to rest sinisterly on her shoulder.

Cameron let out a wild shriek, and jumped forward, crashing into House and, because he was severely unbalanced, knocking him over.

House flung his arms out behind him, much like Cameron had done earlier, to break his fall. He landed on the hard floor with a gentle 'thud'.

Cameron instinctively reached for her pager, while saying,

"House, are you ok?"

"Fine," he gasped.

Another voice pierced the…well, not exactly 'silence'.

"House?"

"Who are you!" Cameron demanded. "What do you want?"

The man held out his right hand.

"James Wilson," he said dryly. "I don't think we've met."


	3. Chapter 3

Stuck

BookwormKiwi

Disclaimer: Not mine.

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers, you guys made my day.

In response to livetoeat06, Cameron _did_ know Wilson, he was making a joke. I hope I've made that clear here.

By the way, sorry to some, but I have this thing about dialogue, and I include quite a lot in here.

* * *

"Wilson!" Cameron exclaimed.

"Nice to meet you," he said, nodding.

"This isn't funny," Cameron replied angrily.

"Uh, yes it is," Wilson said, giving a smile.

"House?" Cameron turned back to him. His eyes were closed.

"House?" she repeated more urgently, shaking him slightly.

"Cut it out," he murmured.

"House, are you ok?"

"Cameron, I…" he trailed off.

"House!"

He sat up.

"What?"

"House!"

Wilson was beginning to get very sick of hearing his friend's name repeated over and over.

"What?" House asked again, his tone irritated.

"Are you ok?" Cameron was kneeling beside him, looking concernedly down at her boss.

"Fine," he insisted. "Wow, I always thought you'd look _up_ to me, literally and figuratively."

Cameron took a moment to consider his statement.

"Well, I respect you, yes, and you _are_ taller than me, so I suppose…"

"How are we going to get out of here?" Wilson asked impatiently.

"Good question," House said calmly. "Do you have an answer?"

"If I did, would I be asking?" Wilson asked irritably.

"Is that rhetorical?"

"Do you want it to be?"

"What kind of reply is _that_?" House asked sneeringly.

"What kind do you want-"

"Give it a rest," Cameron sighed. "Wilson, how d'you get here, anyway?"

"I walked through the doors," he said, shrugging, "and ended up here." He shot a dark look at House. "With him."

"You went shopping with _House_?" Cameron asked incredulously, raising an eyebrow.

"I know, I know, it's stupid, but-"

"I'm still here, you know," House said from a shadow.

"How could we forget?" Wilson sighed.

"Is _that_ rhetorical?"

"Do you-"

"Wilson," Cameron said warningly.

Wilson uttered a meek reply of, "Sorry, Cameron."

It was hard not to retaliate when House was grating him.

The three friends - ok, not so much friends, but acquaintances – sat in small circle. Doing nothing. Finally, Cameron stood up.

"I don't like the dark," she said distastefully.

"There's a candle section over there," Wilson said, pointing helpfully. Cameron followed his finger, and, after knocking over a few things that caused terrible pains in her shins, she found the candles. Gathering a few in her arms, she made her way back to the pair, waiting patiently for her.

"How are we going to light them?" Cameron asked as she dumped the candles in Wilson's lap.

"Smart girl like you should know the answer," House replied.

Wilson surprised everyone by pulling a cigarette lighter out of his pocket.

"Here," he said, tossing it over to Cameron, along with a candle which she clumsily caught.

"I didn't know you smoked," Cameron said, staring intently at Wilson.

"And you will continue not to know," he replied, glaring back at her.

Cameron closed her mouth, and lit two of the white, fat candles.

"These stink," said House. "What are they, lavender?"

"I got unscented," Cameron answered him. "Vicodin's making your senses go numb."

"Where are they, by the way?" House asked severely, turning to Wilson. Cameron watched them warily.

"I took them," Wilson stated.

"And put them…where?"

"Away."

"Away…where?"

"Somewhere special."

"Somewhere special…where?"

Wilson sighed.

"Look, House, I'm not giving it back to you! You take way too much of that stuff."

"Do I look like I care?"

Wilson began to grow angry.

"No! But you should! You're a doctor addicted to drugs. It's pathetic."

House turned to Cameron for support. She felt the moment was right to speak up.

"I agree," she piped in. Wilson turned to her as well. Cameron could see that he was not expecting this.

"Don't worry, Wilson, she's not quite herself," House said to Wilson's puzzled looks. "Being with me for so long does that to her."

"Who is she, then?" Wilson questioned.

"No idea."

"As long as she doesn't actually turn _into_ you," Wilson said.

Only for so long, does Cameron put up with watching the two, like a tennis match, talk about her.

"House isn't so bad," she said softly. House looked almost disgusted at her sympathy.

"Just wait until morning," Wilson said, with a smile that some might mistake for a grimace. "_Then_ you'll see."

* * *

A/N: Wow, long chapter. That was fun. I know nothing's happening, and that's kinda the way it's meant to be. A lot of fluff, so excuse the plotless story. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Pairings: Possible Wilson/Cam, if you read into it, but that might change. Otherwise my friends will kill me…

A/N: By popular demand, another character has entered. And Wilson seems very OOC in this…might stop by and fix it later.

I think I went a bit crazy in this chapter. I was trying out different words…

Thanks to all reviewers.

In answer to KissMyWookiee, I've no idea if they have K-mart's and Big W's in America, so I cleverly left that little detail out…

TPolTucker: Lol, thanks for your enthusiasm. See what I've done for you?

* * *

Morning. It seemed so far away. Cameron hugged her knees and rested her head on the points…rather uncomfortable, but she'd rather not lie on the floor. It was…unhygienic, to say the least.

"Morning," House sighed. "It seems so far away."

Cameron glanced oddly at him.

"What did I say?" he protested. Cameron was too tired to give a proper answer, so she shrugged.

"Women," House grumbled. "I will be happy when someone figures out their language."

"House, happy?" Wilson said, raising his own head from the floor. "Not gonna happen."

"There must be something," Cameron thought out loud. Two heads turned towards her.

"There must be something that makes you happy." Cameron was talking directly to House now.

House pondered the statement for a moment.

"Nope."

"Nothing?" Cameron asked, almost pleadingly. She didn't believe that.

"I don't believe you. Perhaps there's nothing you can think of, but there has to be something that you really want."

"If Cuddy stopped harassing me about clinic duty," House said. "I would be truly happy then."

Wilson hastily turned his snort of laughter to a hacking cough when Cameron shot a glare in his direction.

"I don't _harass_ you," came an irritable voice from behind them.

For the second time that night, Cameron let out a shriek. Wilson instinctively put his hands over his ears. Whenever his wife shrieked, he knew he didn't want to listen to whatever came next.

"I just prefer to keep my job. And yours. And that reminds me, next week, you need to make a speech for the committee. Are you capable of that?"

Cuddy. Even in the most extreme circumstances, she managed to turn talk to work.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Cameron asked her disbelievingly. "If I hadn't known better, I would've said you'd all planned this."

Cuddy chose not to answer her question. Or perhaps she didn't hear it, as she was arguing furiously with House.

"Me too," Wilson said. "It is kinda odd, isn't it?"

Cuddy was still trying to convince House to do what she asked, so said nothing on the topic.

Wilson and Cameron sat close together, feeling each other's heat. Cameron shivered, realising she was as cold as an ice cube. Colder, even.

"Does this place have central heating at all?" Cameron asked, shaking harder.

"I doubt it's turned on," Wilson replied. His eyes were closed, but his voice didn't sound one bit sleepy.

"You're not tired, are you?" Cameron asked, adding quietly, "You reckon we'll get out of here soon?"

"Soon as morning comes," Wilson responded, ignoring her first question. "That's when we can get out of this hell hole."

Cameron leapt to defences immediately.

"Come on, it's not _that_ bad," she sniffed.

"Not that bad?" Wilson repeated. "We're stuck with two bickering children for the night." He gestured towards House and Cuddy. "What could be worse?"

"I can think of-"

Wilson held up his hand.

"Don't want to know."

Cameron shrugged off her hurt feeling, with the reassurance of the fact that they were all pretty tired and grumpy at the moment.

She glanced resignedly over at House and Cuddy, still shooting insults at each other.

She was trying to figure out how their conversation had gone from next week's meeting, to House's big headedness, when she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was a familiar feeling; it had happened once before. However, it was still a shock, and she jumped a little.

Wilson laughed.

"You're so tense. Relax," he told her.

"Relax?" Cameron's voice came out a bit higher than intended. Despite herself, she laughed at Wilson's smile.

"Let's get away from…them," Wilson said, and pulled her through several sections of the store.

They hadn't taken a candle, and were in almost complete darkness. After a few minutes of blind running, Cameron called,

"Where are we going?"

"Far away," came the answer from somewhere in front of her.

They continued running.

After half an hour, Cameron resisted against the dragging.

"I…think this is far enough," she said uncertainly.

"Are you nuts?" Wilson asked, staring at her, and pointing over his shoulder to House and Cuddy, glaring furiously at each other, like a couple of fourth graders.

"We ran around in circles!" Cameron cried. "For half an hour, too."

Wilson shrugged.

"It was a long day at the hospital," he said, shrugging nonchalantly. "I didn't get a chance to run."

Cameron gazed at him intently, but was interrupted by Cuddy, who had huffily stomped over to them.

"I don't know _how_ I got myself into this," she complained readily. "But I have to get out of it. Soon. Or I might go mad."

House had crept up behind Cameron, without her noticing, so she jumped slightly when he spoke, banging the top of her head against his chin.

"I thought you were already- Ow!"

Cameron apologised quickly.

"I'm so sorry, are you OK?"

"That makes…4 times you've asked me tonight?"

"I'm sorry."

"Cameron," Cuddy said, turning to her, "you don't have to be sorry he's a jerk."

"I'm not a-" House started indignantly, but stopped and thought about it.

"Point taken."

Cuddy smiled smugly.

"It's taken me all of 7 years to get him to admit that."

* * *

A/N: Wow, flames. I really feel special now. I almost like them; I find them really amusing. However, it doesn't really help me much. If you don't like it, or feel something could be better, please tell me. And I know some of you are incapable, but _try_ and be nice.

Constructive criticism might make me do something. Flames show me you're a…I won't continue.

Dr Cameron: I have no idea what BUOU is, so your comment means nothing. However, it's good to see that there is something more pointless than this.

Dr Colander: I read cereal boxes on a regular basis; if you know where to look, they can be quite informative. Especially the bit about how much energy and sugar it gives you; that's when you realise cereal actually isn't a very good breakfast option.

I don't want to beg for reviews, but a little incentive: I almost always read the stories of my reviewers, and am courteous enough to leave a review. I'm trying to think of that fable, about the elephant and the mouse. What was the moral? Something about favours.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Pairings: I haven't decided yet.

A/N: I'm too impatient to finish a chapter, then send it off for beta-ing, then wait for them to send it back with problems, then me fixing it…so all mistakes are mine. Except the really bad ones, they're my friend's…

I also should have said this before, but thanks to Daphne Queen for coming up with my title.

For those who don't know…Crow's feet: A wrinkle at the outer corner of your eyes.

An uneventful 20 minutes passed in almost complete silence.

"Can we _do_ something?" Cameron burst out suddenly. The three people around her looked up. Cuddy had been twisting her hair around her finger; House had been staring at the ceiling with a dangerously bored expression on his face; and Wilson looked like he had been doing some serious thinking.

"Ya," House encouraged her. "Please. Think of something."

"Must you always treat your staff like dirt, House?" Cuddy barked.

"No. Sometimes like earth, sometimes like soil. Not always dirt," he said, with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Today, Wilson noticed this feature particularly.

"You know, House, some people get crow's feet when they age. You won't have that problem, will you?" he said moodily.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" House said, firing up immediately.

"They call them 'laugh lines', you know," Wilson smirked.

"I'm trying to conjure up a picture of a laughing House," Cuddy said, also smirking annoyingly. "It's not working."

House looked…almost hurt, Cameron thought, but she waved away the feeling. House had no emotions, therefore technically could not get hurt.

"I can laugh," he said sulkily.

"Yeah?" Now Wilson was looking very amused. "Show us."

"I don't laugh on command," House said irately.

"Admit it, House," Cuddy said, now laughing herself. "You don't laugh at all."

Scowling heavily, House suddenly produced a high pitched giggle.

"Happy now?" he said grudgingly. He received no answer, though, as the others were all falling about, clutching their stomachs.

House sighed deeply, and leaned against the wall behind him, waiting for his colleagues to catch their breath.

"Done yet?" he asked irritably, when they calmed down, and sat up. Small chuckles escaped the lips of each of them from time to time. They had almost forgotten what a horrible situation they were in.

"I need to remember that," Cuddy said. "I don't think I'll forget it in a hurry."

"Everyone at work's gonna hear about this!" Wilson chuckled.

"No!" House pleaded. "Not Chase! Please, not Chase!"

They all laughed. At House's expense. It was the best time to laugh.

"How long's it been?" Wilson asked after a moment.

"Since…" Cameron prompted.

"Since we got stuck in here," he said, completing her sentence.

Cameron checked her watch in the candle light.

"No!" she moaned. "It's stopped working!"

Wilson pulled up his sleeve to check his watch. He sighed wearily.

"It's only 11 o'clock."

They all concurrently slumped down.

"What time does this place open?" Cameron asked.

"Around 6," Cuddy said dolefully. Trust Cuddy to know. Wilson noticed this too.

"What time does it close tomorrow?" he asked off-handedly.

"6," she said absent-mindedly.

"How about Saturday?" Cameron had realised what Wilson was doing, and joined in.

"Earlier on weekends, about 5, I think," Cuddy replied. She was staring at the floor, and looked like she was thinking about something. "4 pm on Sunday. They like to get home early, I suppose."

Cameron and Wilson playfully continued their game, until Cuddy realised what they were up to, and slapped them both lightly on the arm.

"Do you mind not exploiting me in my vulnerable state?" she said, eyes narrowed.

House cleared his throat.

"I can think of a much better state to exploit– Ow!"

Cuddy had given him a hard smack on the back of his head.

"Why do I feel like I'm being abused?" House complained glumly.

"No idea," Cuddy said. "Because you're not. We're making sure you _respect_ us a little in future."

Cuddy thought for a moment.

"When I say us, I mean me," she said. The disbelieving looks she received from Cameron and Wilson were squashed by,

"Next week, you two have _double_ clinic hours," she said evilly. House, for once, actually looked sympathetic. He couldn't think of a worse punishment.

"Don't be _too_ harsh, Cuddy," he said sorrowfully.

"_You_," she said, through gritted teeth, "can have triple."

House, for once, was speechless, while the others looked on gleefully.

"Why am I getting so heavily punished?" he asked after a moment.

"Because you owe me a hundred million dollars worth of clinic hours," she said stiffly. "You might as well start now."

A/N: Ok, I'm suffering very much from writer's block, due to the recent two shows of House, that have made me fully realise how much better it is than my pointless story. I'll continue, though, it's fun.

And the two shows – well, they're just 16 and 17 of season 1. I hate not knowing what's happening.


	6. Chapter 6

Stuck

Chapter 6

A/N: Livetoeat06: Well, I did answer your first question in an author's note; I've no idea where they are; I don't know whether there are K-Mart's or Target's in America. House and the rest are all in the same place, at the same time, because if they weren't, I wouldn't have a plot.

I should have said this sooner, but to Buzzkill Bunny, I shall give you an offended look, and say,

"I'm Australian!"

Just like my favourite character did. Because I am.

You people all want Chase and Foreman, but how much more coincidental can you get?

* * *

"I just don't get what was so important about the money," House objected roughly.

"You don't – how do you – _not_ get it?" Cuddy stammered. "House, that was a _hundred million_ I gave away for you."

"I'm touched." House was getting tired.

Cuddy began to fire up.

"If you're not even _grateful _- " but she was interrupted by House's sigh of impatience.

"Of course I'm damn grateful!" House exploded, pounding his cane on the floor. Cameron winced, but Cuddy stared intently at House. "Can't you see that?"

"Now you mention it, no, I can't," Cuddy replied snappily.

"They really are only 8 years old," Wilson commented sourly to Cameron, who smiled appreciatively. Wilson turned to the other two.

"Can you keep it to yourselves?" Wilson yelled. "Look, we're all unhappy about this…"

"Unhappy?" Cuddy repeated. "I've had nightmares about this."

"Being stuck in a store?" Cameron asked curiously.

"Being stuck _anywhere_ with him!" she said, jabbing her finger at House's chest.

House smirked.

"So you dream about me? Any particular ones you want to share with us?"

Cuddy closed her eyes, and took in a deep breath.

"Why must you make everything I say seem sexual?" she demanded.

"I would very much like to leave them," Wilson said in a resigned tone to Cameron, "but they might murder each other."

Cameron and Wilson watched the argument with interest.

The next moment moved pretty fast. A hand lay to rest on Cameron's shoulder.

If it hadn't happened so many times before, she would have screamed.

But she didn't. She turned, calm as anything, with a murderous glare on her face.

"Chase, you scared me half to death!"

* * *

A/N: I keep forgetting that they have only candle light to see by!

Heh, nice cliff-hanger. Yep, it's short; my writer's block still hasn't evaporated, like I hoped.

And Livetoeat06, why don't you try writing a story? I'd love to see your work.

Calwyn: I agree with everything you said. Yes, I live in Australia. Yep, reading fanfic ruins the show, it's annoying, but a weekly dose of House is not enough.

Daphne Queen: You would have to be my most positive reviewers…I'm not that great…


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

A/N: Can someone tell me whether it's mandatory to write disclaimers, please? I've been putting them in some, but they're just annoying, and there's no way I'd be writing fanfic if I actually owned it.

Hey, I finally managed to find a reason why they're all here! And I think this might be ending soon. I can't think of anything else for them to do. Suggestions welcomed with open arms. And tell me if I _should_ continue.

* * *

House and Cuddy silenced themselves at her words.

"Better do it again," House said wisely. "You know, finish the job off properly."

To House's annoyance, they all ignored him. They were all gawping at Chase.

Chase looked around at all the pairs of eyes gazing in his direction.

"What?"

"_You're_ here, too?" Cuddy said.

Chase glanced around at them all in the semi-darkness.

"What are you lot doing here?" he asked, wetting his lips. He was getting nervous; they all seemed to be staring at him funny.

Chase soon noticed the beam of light from over his shoulder that the others were looking at. He turned slowly, and came face to face with Foreman.

"I got flashlights," he said, holding them up to show them. Cameron grinned at him, and caught the one he threw her.

Cuddy and Wilson exchanged baffled looks.

"Foreman, where did you come fr-" Cuddy started, but Foreman wasn't listening.

"There are people all over," he was reporting. "Yeah, I heard House and Cuddy, so I came over to see. Some people warned me not to," he laughed. "They thought there was a war going on. I had to see, though. I was worried. Not about _him_," he said, jerking his head at House. "I thought he might be murdering Cuddy."

Cuddy broke into an unexpected smile. She nodded her appreciation.

"I passed a section with flashlights, and there was a basket of batteries conveniently nearby."

Scanning around with the flashlight, Cameron saw how true Foreman's words were.

There were people scattered around them. Some alone, some with little kids sleeping on them, and one couple even in a tight embrace.

They all threw their hands up to their face when Cameron's flashlight passed over them, shielding their eyes from the sudden brightness.

"How did we not see this before?" Cameron asked dubiously.

"Hate to break it to you, Cameron," House said, in a tone that showed he clearly didn't hate this at all, "but we were all way too excited to notice anything that was going on around us."

Cameron gave her soft version of a glare.

"I'm uncomfortable with so many people around," House said pathetically. "Can I leave?"

"Please do," Cuddy murmured. House made a face at her.

"I get to choose one victim to come with me, though," he said, looking at each of his colleagues in turn.

The bunch of them exchanged nervous glances, though all eyes came to rest on Wilson, who was looking resigned.

House surprised them all, bar Foreman, by choosing Cameron.

"Come on, then," he barked, when she didn't move. She shook her head fearfully.

Cuddy was getting impatient.

"Come on, Cameron, it's not a death sentence."

But the way Cameron was looking, it may as well have been.

"You don't want to come?" House asked, looking amused. "Ok. I'll have to choose someone else. The boys are boring, so…"

Now Cuddy was looking scared.

"Chase."

Chase looked up from the floor furiously.

"_Excuse_ me?"

"Chase," House repeated calmly.

Chase looked around for support from the others. Cameron looked apologetic, Wilson shrugged helplessly, and the others avoided his gaze.

"Oh, fine," House said, defeated. "No one wants to come. Nobody likes me."

Nobody said anything.

"Sadly, I quite like that."

The others nodded in agreement. That _was_ sad.

"I'll just have to stay, then."

Exchanges of annoyed faces passed around the team. They had been happy to hear House was leaving them, and more than a little disappointed he decided to stay.

House sat heavily, and looked expectantly at the others, who followed suit reluctantly.

After a moment of silence - punctuated by snores and groans that, until recently, they somehow hadn't heard - House spoke.

"Now what?"

"We could do what _most_ people do at night," Cameron suggested quietly.

"What's that?" House asked.

"Sleep," she said simply.

"Now you're just being boring," House said, playing with his shoelaces. Cuddy watched him with interest, as he tied and retied them with different knots.

"And besides, I can't sleep when I'm surrounded by people," he added maliciously.

"You could always go over there," hinted Wilson hopefully, gesturing vaguely around.

"With _different_ people? I don't think so."

Cameron shone her torch over to the unknown people again.

"Are you quite comfortable?" she asked a youngish looking boy anxiously. He mumbled something in reply, stood, and walked away. Cameron looked surprised.

She moved on to the next one.

"Sleeping alright?"

The young woman muttered an incomprehensible answer, and stalked away, looking annoyed.

When Cameron turned to the last, she stood for a moment, a little unsure. The young man had winked at her rather suggestively. He started to swagger over, a sleazy smile in her direction.

Cameron turned, disgusted, to Cuddy, to see if she'd noticed this.

She had. Cuddy, laughing inwardly, gave a grimace and a rueful look at her.

Cameron had a silent conversation with Cuddy, their eyes yelling at each other.

_I'd run._

_That's so mean, though._

_Look at him._

_What about him?_

_Just look at him!_

Cameron did. Cameron ran. Cameron got three feet away before she tripped and did an impressive tumble, landing back on her feet.

Cameron looked just as surprised as any of the others.

"Wow," Foreman acknowledged plainly. "Where'd you learn that?"

"I…don't really know," she admitted.

"You do gymnastics or anything?" he suggested.

"Yeah, when I was-"

"No wonder you're so light," House said. Cameron turned to him.

"You weigh nothing."

"When I was 6," she said finally.

"When you were 6, you weighed nothing?" Foreman asked.

"I did gymnastics when I was 6."

Cameron was getting very tired of repeating herself.

"So you weighed nothing?" House asked. Cameron stared at him. His face was set to 'curious' notch, but his eyes gave him away. He was being irritating on purpose.

Cameron sighed. She didn't know why she wasn't used to it.

* * *

A/N: Look at that! I finally managed to write about three whole paragraphs without dialogue!

Rrr…I really can't get Wilson in character. He's annoying me, at the moment. Actually, I haven't read a House story to date that _did_ have the perfect interpretation of Wilson's character. Let me know if there is one.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Disclaimer: One day…

A/N: I have decided that this will finish soon, because it's already about 3:00 in the morning, and the store opens at about 6. I don't want to leave it here, though, so maybe a sequel. Ha, I see the looks of pain upon your faces!

Livetoeat06: Asinine…what a great word. I think I'll use it!

* * *

Cuddy yawned.

"Why don't we get some sleep?" she asked sensibly.

"I'm not t-ti-tired," Cameron argued weakly, a huge yawn punctuating her speech.

House raised his eyebrows.

"Try that again," he said.

"I'm not tired," she protested, her eyelids drooping as she spoke.

House got up and limped over, sitting down again next to Cameron, who looked wearily up at him in surprise.

Wilson looked over at Cuddy and noticed a small smile playing at her lips as she surreptitiously watched the pair talking quietly.

He inched closer to the woman, and she turned towards him.

"Never thought I'd see this," she mused quietly.

"You thought you'd die before it happened?" Wilson asked, glancing down at Cuddy.

She laughed appreciatively.

"Not quite," she said. "I just thought House wouldn't be so _open_."

"Neither did I," Wilson said, slightly put out that he didn't even know his best friend.

"Shh," she hissed gently. "Listen."

Wilson leaned forward, straining his ears for House's conversation.

"You're like a marshmallow, Cameron."

Wilson and Cuddy exchanged looks that said, all too plainly, _What the hell?_

"Excuse me?" The surprise on her face was evident.

"A marshmallow," House repeated calmly. "You're soft on the inside, but…wait, I got it all wrong."

Cameron's puzzled eyes were staring directly at House.

"Marshmallows are soft on the _in_side," he muttered to himself. "And you're soft on the _out_side."

He thought for a moment longer.

"Ok," he said finally. "You're like an inside out marshmallow."

Cameron was now gazing at House as if he were a demented freak. Chase and Foreman were glaring at each other. No one knew _why_, but it was nothing unusual.

"Why am I like an inside out marshmallow?" Cameron finally choked.

Cuddy looked away. She didn't want to know, though she knew Cameron just couldn't resist responding to the asinine comment.

"Well, see, you're like a marshmallow," House said, squinting at the floor, "because you're soft, and you've got a firm streak somewhere, but it's hidden. Meaning your hard bit is on the inside. You're all soft and gooey on the outside."

He looked up.

"Better be careful," he warned her. "There's nothing to stop you from dripping."

Chase and Foreman had put their attention on House, now, and were wondering whether House didn't belong in the psych ward.

House ignored all the stares he was receiving, and closed his eyes.

Chase finally came to his senses, and snorted.

"Only House would compare you to a marshmallow, Cameron."

* * *

A/N: Kinda short, but I just _had _to leave it there!

Thanks to reviewers, you make my day.

Daphne Queen: Yes, maybe, House/Cam, or Chase/Cam, or Wilson/Cam…one of those, I haven't quite decided!

Reitashnehelena: Yeesh, you and Daphne, hold the capitals! I feel like you're yelling at me! Actually, you probably are.

Charmed-angel4: Yes, I ignore you happily:) I'm not too crash hot at writing ships, so…maybe. I want to know what happens next too!

Livetoeat06: You think you _offended_ me? What gave you that idea! I'm not offended in the slightest! Lol, sorry, but really, I'm not. Nothing wrong with your reviews. They always amuse me! Wow, really, my writing sounds American? I've been _trying_ to get it like that, and I thought I wasn't doing so well…all these British terms seem to slip in! Oh, good, there _are_ Target's and K-Mart's over there…yes, they're in…one of them. Ha, no need to thank me for putting in Chase, he's my favourite character, can't be without him!

Yeesh, author's note is almost longer than the chapter!


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Pairings: I still haven't decided. Love triangles are fun…

A/N: Heh heh, I'm really having fun now, I don't know if I can let go!

I think I'm suffering from House withdrawal. I have decided that I can never be truly happy until I get the DVD's…that's gonna take a while. I have to wash the car multiple times to get money…and I have to wait till they actually come _out_. Damn late Australian TV.

I curse my friend for introducing me to House, I am too obsessed. I've had two dreams about the show within the last two nights, one of which included me committing suicide after missing a House episode.

* * *

House was asleep. He was the only one. The rest were sitting tiredly in a circle, talking softly to each other.

"I am too bored," Wilson complained.

"I have crosswords."

Chase held up a book.

"Any one want to help?"

Everyone looked away.

Disgruntled, Chase uttered a "Fine," and opened the book, smoothed out the page, and began working on the first one, filling in the answers almost faster than he could read the clues.

"Why is he always doing crosswords?" House asked. Cameron didn't really notice that he'd come out of what seemed like a deep sleep, to a wide awake position.

"He's always bored," Cameron replied, and added, admiringly, "and he's good at them." Cuddy noticed Chase's cheek colour at her words.

"When he should be working?"

"If you gave us something to do…" Cameron said, trailing off.

"You have clinic duty to entertain you," House whined. "Come to think of, if you're that bored, you can do mine."

Cameron tried very hard to keep her eyes facing straight ahead, rather than rolling right back. Working with House, she was becoming quite good at this task.

"I thought you were sleeping," Cuddy said, looking over to them.

"Was I?"

"Don't even _try_ talking to him, Cuddy," Wilson said, fiddling with his watch strap.

"What's the time?" Cuddy asked drearily.

Wilson brightened as he checked the ticking hands.

"Almost 5!"

Cameron and House opened their eyes eagerly.

"Is it really?" Cameron asked, hardly daring to believe that their 'adventure' might be finally over.

"Come on," Wilson urged. "Let's play a game to pass the time."

"OK," Cuddy agreed. "What shall we play?"

"Let Cameron choose," said House.

"Me?" Cameron cried, shooting an ungrateful look towards House. "Let Foreman choose."

The team looked over at Foreman, who was lying peacefully with his hands over his chest.

"OK, so he's out," Cameron observed. "How 'bout Chase?"

Chase was still heavily engrossed in his crosswords. Cameron noticed he looked stumped.

"Need some help?" she called over.

"Yeah," Chase said. "Four letter word for 'attractive'.

"Chase?" Cuddy said, coming over to peer over his shoulder.

"That's five letters," he joked.

"Works for me," Cameron said, unconsciously turning her gaze to House. Everyone stared at her, including House who, Cameron noticed gladly, had his mouth open slightly. She blushed a little, quickly stood up, and stalked off.

"What was that?" Wilson asked in amazement. "What did she just say?"

Chase was speechless.

"She, uh…" Foreman couldn't believe it either.

Cuddy was listening to Chase as he muttered something that sounded distinctly like "Score".

"What was that?" she asked him innocently.

"What?" Chase sat up alertly. "Nothing."

Cuddy smirked. She would bring this up again…when he needed to be blackmailed.

* * *

A/N: Aha, I love doing these.

Livetoeat06: Sleep? Why would they sleep? Lol. They have an hour left!

eMeRaLdoNe: Consider your vote counted. Looks like it's headed that way.

Paige fan: Too _short_? Whoa, I thought they were too long! I keep them short_er_ and update faster.

Megan: Ha, as you wish. You, as everyone else, like my marshmallow bit, and I'm really proud of that too.:) As you wish, Megan, House/Cam.

Jen: I feel extremely special. Well, there are actually quite a few Australian writers, and some of them are quite good, take CSIMel. Well, actually, she writes NCIS fanfic, which I enjoy, but perhaps you don't. Ha, ignore time, I'd like to, but I like to keep this realistic. I might do a sequel, though. Ah, ships are the best part!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Pairings: Yay! Happy to announce a definite House/Cam.

A/N: I keep forgetting they're in _darkness_. So, imagine there are heaps of people with flashlights surrounding them or something.

* * *

"Cameron?"

The woman looked up slowly, to see Cuddy staring down at her.

"Yes?"

"Are you…ok?"

"Fine," she said, nodding sincerely.

"Why do I not believe that?"

"I don't know," she said. "You should. I'm fine."

Cuddy raised his eyebrows.

"You wanna talk to Chase?"

"No," she said fiercely. Cuddy hid a smile.

"Did you mean it?"

Cameron gave a sharp laugh.

"They sent you to interrogate me, then, did they?"

"What? No!"

"You just had to find out yourself, then?"

Cuddy failed to stop a sly grin appearing on her face.

"You going to tell me?" she asked hopefully.

"I might," she said teasingly. "You gonna let House off clinic duty this week?"

Cuddy stared.

"Why would I-"

"You wanna hear me out?"

Cuddy closed her eyes. Cameron could see the strain it took for her to decide. Cameron wondered whether Cuddy would connect the statement and the request. Turned out she didn't.

"OK. Spit," Cuddy said finally.

"No."

"No?" Cuddy cried. "I just gave House a week off and-"

"I didn't mean it," she said calmly.

"Then why the hell did you say it?"

Cameron didn't reply immediately. Cuddy gazed at her.

"I wanted to…" She didn't finish.

"Wanted to what?" Cuddy urged. Cameron murmured something incomprehensible. Noticing Cuddy's confused look, she sighed.

"Don't make me say it again," she pleaded. Cuddy was silent. Cameron stared at the roof, and blurted out,

"I wanted to make House pay attention to me."

If Cuddy was surprised, she didn't show it. She didn't say anything.

Cameron looked at her.

"Why do I not see a look of great shock on your face?" she asked. Cuddy gave a small smile.

"Chase overheard House and Wilson talking…" She didn't need to finish. Cameron was rolling her eyes.

"One day, I am going to tape his mouth shut…" she said.

Half listening to her light-hearted threats, Cuddy motioned for Cameron to follow her. She reluctantly complied.

In the half light, the men's figures came into view sooner than expected.

Suddenly, Cameron turned, and tried to push back.

"Don't make me," she moaned. Cuddy grabbed her firmly by the arm, and pulled her forward.

"Cameron has something to-" Cuddy started, as they burst into the opening of clothes racks.

"Hey," Cameron said simply, walking over and sitting next to a very bewildered Chase. "What did the word turn out to be?"

"Huh?"

"Four letter word for attractive," she said, as if explaining something extremely simple. "What was it?"

"Oh, uh…cute."

"You're that, too," she said unblushingly. Foreman and Wilson watched her warily. Cuddy gave a 'What are you _doing_?" look, while House firmly avoided her eyes.

Cameron noted all this, and with an inward smile, she spoke.

"So, that game. How 'bout Truth or Dare?"

* * *

A/N: Eehee, that's going to be so much fun to write! Any suggestions? Because I have no imagination.

Bibliosyph: I keep forgetting they're in a store, too. Hmm…I might work on that, thanks.

Megan: Sorry, never seen I Dream of Jeanie, you'll have to explain. Well, I blink… I think he is!

Paige fan: That is extremely good to hear; I've always wanted to make people laugh! Updating extra quickly, just for you!


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Disclaimer: All characters were given to me once, as a present, but stupidly, I sold them to the highest bidder.

Pairings: House/Cam all the way!

A/N: My friends are influencing me way too much; they hate Chase. He's my favourite character, yet I'm bad mouthing him.

* * *

The males all seemed a little surprised at Cameron's choice.

"What's wrong with it?" she asked defiantly.

"Nothing," Foreman replied. "It's just…an unexpected choice."

Cameron wondered why they thought this. Truth or Dare had been her favourite childhood game. Her friends hated playing with her; she was too imaginative, they said.

The others hadn't said anything, so Cameron recited the rules.

"OK, there's two ways of playing this. We can take it in turns to ask each other, or we can gang up on a poor victim."

"Gangs," said Chase at once. Trust him, Cameron thought. He was always one to want protection.

"OK," said Cameron slowly. "Nothing dangerous, basically. And don't ask anything you wouldn't want to answer."

"But that makes it so boring!" House complained.

"Oh, fine!" Cameron relented irritably. "Just be prepared to answer anything that comes your way." She gave a cunning grin. "You better be careful what you say."

House just raised his eyebrows in response.

"Who's first?"

"Cameron."

She didn't know who volunteered her, but she agreed readily.

"Truth or dare, Cameron?" Foreman asked.

"Truth," she said eagerly. Wilson didn't see the need to consult his team mates, but by their expressions, it would've been the first question they asked anyway.

"Did you mean what you said to Chase?"

"That's…a matter of opinion," she said tactfully.

"Who's opinion?" Chase demanded, while House complained.

"Oh, come on. There must be something in the rules that say you have to give a straight answer."

"Well," she said slowly. "Obviously the guy's hot. You, you're not talking about his aesthetics, you're talking about if I want to jump him. I don't.

Chase was looking fairly taken aback.

"How the hell did you know I said that?"

Cameron smirked.

"Looks like Chase's isn't the biggest mouth."

Chase glared at Foreman.

"You told her?" he demanded.

"No," Foreman answered, recoiling slightly, "I only told Wilson."

It was Wilson's turn to turn away.

"Gossip spreads fast in hospitals," Cameron told Chase smugly.

Chase scowled.

"You're cute when you do that," Cameron laughed, punching his arm playfully.

Chase flushed.

"Ha. It's my Aussie charm."

"Too bad I hate foreign accents," she sighed dramatically. He looked at her in surprise.

"You do?"

"You're so gullible."

Sounds of mocking laughter reached their ears.

"Nice one, Cameron," Foreman chuckled enthusiastically. Chase glowered.

"We are not amused," House said, trying to imitate Chase's accent. Chase crossed his arms defiantly.

"That's unfair," he said crossly. "Victoria was a British queen."

"Then I need to say it with a British accent," House said. He was enjoying pushing all Chase's buttons.

"Please don't," he said, frowning.

"We are not amused," House tried again.

"You suck at acting," Cuddy told him.

"What the hell, it's annoying Chase," he said happily.

"We've gone way off the topic here," Cameron said, as Chase pulled a face.

"Who's turn?" Wilson asked. Cameron noticed he'd been rather quiet through all of the discussion.

"Chase!" she cackled. Chase was seemed extremely unhappy, and Cuddy was looking at her, strangely surprised. Cameron was still laughing madly, and the others were quite scared.

Cameron suddenly stopped.

"OK, Chase, truth or dare?"

"Truth," he said warily.

"Playing it safe, huh, Chase?" Foreman teased.

Chase's mouth remained shut.

"What shall we ask him?" House mused.

"Nothing too harsh," Cameron insisted.

Once again, Wilson saw no need to verbalise his ideas.

"You like anyone on the team?" he asked. Cameron was interested that he would ask this straight away. Normally, he was a pretty private person, who respected other's feelings. She supposed he was tired and didn't really care about anything other than getting out of the shop.

"What kind of question is that?" Chase asked incredulously. "The only one I _don't _like is House."

"That's not what he meant and you know it," Foreman demanded, pointing an accusing finger at him. Cameron expected House to be offended, but he looked mildly amused.

"You wanna know, too?" Chase slipped his hands casually in his pockets, stood up, and leaned against a nearby wall.

His colleagues were giving him strange looks.

"What? I feel weird having my hands in my pockets if I'm not leaning on a wall. The wall completes the picture."

The team exchanged meaningful glances. When no one spoke, Cuddy broke the silence.

"Go on, then, Chase, tell us," she grinned.

"Yeah, I do."

One simple sentence, that shocked them all into silence, though nobody knew _why_ exactly. They were all expecting it.

"Who?"

The question came from all sides of the circle.

"One question," Chase said, and shut his mouth again.

"Oh, come on," House said, "isn't it obvious?"

Cameron shot a grin over at Cuddy when she saw House's cold glare at Chase.

Cuddy rolled her eyes. Cameron was playing with House's feelings; never a good idea. She shook her head warningly.

"Play it safe," she mouthed to her.

A/N: livetoeat06: Yep, we have Blockbuster's over here.

Lijep: Ha, I'm glad you're happy! I still like Chase/Cam though. I couldn't decide before, but all my reviewers were going 'No! Not Chase/Cam, put her with House!' so I did!

Paige fan: If you consider tomorrow…today, then yes!

Lucy: Yeah, I was thinking of that dare…I was completely annoyed at the repeat! I have a feeling they're drawing it out, then they'll stop it over Christmas, to continue next year.

Daphne Queen: Actually, your story _did_ give me that idea…Thank you. I liked it too.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Ha ha ha ha! I mock all those who actually thought it was mine!

A/N: I refuse to change to American spellings, so live with all the extra 'u's in favourite and colour!

* * *

"Duck…duck…duck…"

"Pick someone already; you've been circling us like a shark for 10 minutes!"

"I'm just too…" He yawned. "…damn tired."

House had even gone from giving them all a hard rap on the skull, to a gentle tap on each person's head as he went around the group. They had given up on Truth or Dare when Chase refused to tell them his favourite colour ("It's not pink!" he insisted, though, when everyone had looked from him, to each other, to a bright pink candle sitting in the middle of the circle.).

"Duck…duck…" Cameron was feeling drowsy as the words slowly drummed themselves into her mind. She closed her eyes sleepily, but was brought sharply back to reality was a fist knocked the top of her head. House was circling again.

"Sit down," she said irritably. "There's no point playing; nobody wants to."

House obliged without a word. Cameron wondered for a moment why they had chosen House to have his turn first. It was clear as he sat that his leg was cramping up painfully.

"Wilson?" Cameron whispered to her left, where Wilson's head was nodding.

"Yeah?" he replied without opening his eyes.

"Where'd you put House's Vicodin?"

Cameron could sense House's ears prick up as he heard his favourite word.

"Away," Wilson mumbled.

"Please," she begged, "he needs them."

It was a true sign of the situation they were in that House did not join in and make things worse.

Wilson grudgingly reached in his coat pocket, and withdrew a small bottle, tossing it over to House, who caught it readily, opened it, and took several pills at once.

Cameron almost looked pityingly at House, but thought better of it. He looked incredibly worn out, slumped against a rack of clothes beside her. Cameron looked around, the others all looking the same.

Some were asleep; Foreman, Cuddy, and Wilson. Cameron could see that Chase's eyes were still open. He was flat on his back, his chest moving steadily up and down, his eyes reflecting the candle light.

As Cameron turned back to look at House, she saw he'd fallen asleep, too, in his uncomfortable looking position. She suddenly felt the urge to take off her jacket and lay it over him, like they did in movies, but she didn't, and tried desperately to bite back her laughter.

She almost managed, letting out only a soft snort, which drew Chase's head to turn her way. Shaking hers, she gave him a small smile, which he returned weakly, before he rolled his head back, sighed, and closed his eyes.

In her sleepiness, Cameron forgot about the uncleanliness of the floor, and let herself slide down. It wasn't the most restful places to sleep, but it would do. She could see House breathing routinely out of the corner of her eye, and she smiled to herself. All in all, it hadn't been a _bad_ night.

* * *

A/N: I thought that would be the last chapter! But no, I had to end it there; it was such a good spot. And I can't _finish _there, can I? I'm so sorry it was short.

Wow! I'm extremely proud of myself; look at those lovely paragraphs with _no dialogue_!

Livetoeat06: So you're a Chase/Cam shipper too! I like them all, really…I agree with the age thing. What accent? Are you saying you can hear him say it? Chase is the easiest to write, and I like trying to slip in some Aussie slang…except most well brought up Australian's learn to speak the Queen's English.

TPolTucker: Yep, I think you _are_ the only Wilson/Cam supporter! Well, I like it, yes, but I don't normally write it. I might, one day. Can you explain exactly what an M/M is? Is it Male/Male, kinda the same thing as _slash_?

GallopGirl: I think Chase/Cam is actually more sensible than House/Cam. I mean, look at the age differences. But House/Cam _is_ still my fave.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

* * *

A/N: .:sniffs:. I wish this could go on forever, but then it would just get tedious and no one would read it.

Cameron blinked sensitively as light flooded all around her. Squinting, she sat up and gazed around her. Heaps of people were doing the same thing as she, sitting up, looking about confusedly, and realising.

Cameron looked back down at House. He was seemingly unaffected by the sudden brightness. He was the only one still asleep.

She saw Cuddy glancing around, slightly dazed.

Cameron shook House gently, striving to wake him. It didn't work. House seemed immune to outside interference of his dreams. Cameron wondered with amusement for a moment, what he _was_ dreaming about.

Cuddy came over to help. She stood over him for a minute, then gave him a sharp kick in the side.

"Hey!" she yelled.

House woke with a violent curse at Cuddy.

"Let's go," she said, unaffected by his angry glares.

House rose with much more agility than Cameron thought possible for him.

"Excellent," he said, more cheerfully than either woman had ever seen him. He limped, not over to the exit, where they had expected him to, but to where a sale's assistant, who looked no older that 20, was unlocking a store room.

"Excuse me!" he said, jabbing him painfully in the chest. Cameron wondered why he was being so polite.

"Do you realise what you put me through?"

"M-me?" the young boy stammered.

"Well, not you, _personally_," House admitted roughly, "but this whole damn store!"

Wilson, Foreman, and Chase went to stand strongly beside him.

The boy looked extremely bewildered.

"How did you all get in?"

"The entrance," Wilson said, struggling not to fall asleep.

"We're not open y-" he started, but was interrupted when house slammed his cane down.

"Yet here we are!" He scratched his head mockingly. "Now how did that happen?"

The boy was looking rather pale, and extremely frightened. Cameron and Cuddy were standing apart from the crew of men. Cameron didn't like seeing this poor kid so nervous.

"I'd like to-"

"House?"

House stopped mid-sentence when he heard his name. He spun around.

"What?"

"Does it matter? Can't we just go?"

House opened his mouth, as if to say something nastily back, but to Cameron's, and his own, surprise, he shut it again, and let himself follow Cameron and Cuddy towards the outside world.

The three men standing behind him all exchanged 'Were _you_ expecting that?' looks. They followed Cameron, Cuddy and House out of the store.

As they exited, they were almost annoyed to find everyone doing their usual Thursday routines; shoppers doing daily routines.

Cameron's stomach rumbled.

"Want to catch some breakfast?" she asked at large. The majority of them nodded eagerly.

"There's a nice place over there," Cameron said, waving vaguely. The group shrugged, and she led them only a few metres, to a small café.

Sitting down at a large table, Cameron looked expectantly up at the others, who all glanced at each other before taking their seats.

Breakfast was eaten cheerfully. Though tired, the team were extremely glad to be out of their confinement.

Light-hearted jokes passed from one to another, although Chase carefully avoided Cameron's eyes throughout the meal.

House was sitting next to Cameron and, more than once, his hand brushed casually against hers.

Cuddy, sitting next to Cameron, was directly opposite Wilson, and exchanged a grin with him.

"Got time for one last dare?" Cuddy hissed in Cameron's ear.

"Sure, why not?"

"Ask House out."

Cameron turned to look at the older woman.

"Are you mad? He'll never agree."

"He will," she replied knowingly. "And apologise to Chase."

Cameron sighed.

"Oh, fine."

Chase had looked over at the pair curiously when he heard his name, but they weren't saying anything.

He gradually lost interest and turned to chat to Foreman.

They finished up soon after that. They each had a couple of quick coffees, figuring that it would be the only thing they would be running on the entire day.

As they left, House grabbed Cameron and dragged her aside. He stood awkwardly for a moment, with his hands on her shoulders.

She looked at his firm grip warily, and he immediately let go.

"Would you go to dinner with me?" he asked quickly.

Seeing her surprise, he said,

"Would you go to dinner with me – please?"

Cameron laughed cheerfully. She wrapped her arms around House, and hugged him tight.

House looked alarmed, and stood with his arms out, uncomfortably staring at the top of her head. Cameron was laughing into him – she knew how uneasy she was making him. She nodded a yes, and smiled up at him, before turning away.

They rejoined the group, slowly making their way out.

"Do you think Cuddy would…?" House trailed off hopefully, looking around to his boss.

Cuddy sighed.

"Do you think Cuddy would what?" she asked heavily.

"Let us off work today?"

"No," she said forcefully. "Well, not you, House, you owe me 17 hours clinic duty from the past _month_."

House opened his mouth in protest.

"Bar this week. Someone has kindly _volunteered_ to do yours for you." She looked pointedly at Cameron, who scowled. That wasn't part of the deal.

"The rest of you can get some sleep."

Cameron could see three of them brighten greatly, while a stormy cloud had just moved over House's head. She looked up at him sympathetically.

His eyes bore into her as he stared back at her. They asked an unspeakable question.

"Ok," she sighed. "I don't need more sleep, Cuddy. Expect me in by 8."

As she turned to leave, she remembered one last thing.

"I'm sorry, Chase," she said plainly. "I shouldn't have said what I did."

She stepped forward, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Cuddy shook her head, rolling her eyes. If anything, she'd made it worse, as anyone could see. Chase had momentarily looked startled, but was now backing away, and looking as though he expected Cameron to leap at him.

"See you tomorrow," she sang.

And with a slight spring in her step, and a grin lightening her mood, she walked out the dors of the shopping centre, ready to begin a week of clinic duty.

* * *

A/N: Argh! That's heart breaking. I hate saying goodbye.

To Chase/Cam shippers: check out the last line of this article!

Go to wikepedia_dot_com and search for Jennifer Morrison.

Of course, most of you probably already know this, and I'm just extremely slow, but hey…

I think it's cute!

GallopGirl: Yeah, I suppose it _does_ just depend on the person. Cameron's one likely not to care.

Sweet as lemonz: I don't know why I'm being so mean to Chase! He seriously is my favourite character!

Paige fan: Sadly, there is the slight issue of time. It'd look weird if they were stuck there forever.

The Magic Bringer: Heh heh, you have a good point there. And also, Word doesn't allow me to leave out my u's.

Megan: Yeah…I forgot about you! Unlike Cameron, I really do have no imagination, not for things like that, anyway. And I want to continue with the main plot of the story. Ok with the email thing.

Livetoeat06: Yep, I can hear them all. Except Wilson. I don't know why. Yeesh, _I_ could wait for this chapter…the end!


End file.
